Sign the Petition to

Simon Cowell

We, signatories from all around the globe, including Palestinians and citizens of Israel, are all outraged to learn of your $250,000 donation to the organization “Friends of the IDF” (FIDF).

The "IDF", Israel’s army, which your donation supports, committed the Nakba, the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous population of Palestine in the years 1947-1948. To this day, Israel still refuses to recognize the Nakba. This denial has enabled Israel’s army to carry out more violations of international law against the Palestinian people, including further ethnic cleansing, within the armistice line of 1948, in the occupied territories (the West Bank and Gaza), and in Lebanon.

Israel’s army commits war crimes on a daily basis, including military violence against a protected (according to international law) civilian population. Israel's army is responsible for: Mass incarceration, including the incarceration of children; Torture; Violations of the freedom of movement; Mass home demolitions; The plundering of natural resources; and much more.

It is astonishing that an international promoter of music and entertainment, such as yourself, would associate himself with such unethical practices, and donate money to an already over-funded army (over $3B just from the American government, annually). We see it as the obligation of high profile individuals, and the music and entertainment community at large, not to use your privileged status to support regimes which oppress indigenous populations under military occupation.

We ask that you take back the money you have donated to “Friends of the IDF” (FIDF). Surely, there are better ways of using the money to make our world a better place.

Signed,

10 Reasons for a Cultural Boycott of Israel

This petition closed 7 months ago

How this will help

Multimillionaire music and television producer, Simon Cowell has donated $250,000 to media billionaire, Haim Saban's organization "Friends of the IDF". Every year, Saban raises $20 million...

Multimillionaire music and television producer, Simon Cowell has donated $250,000 to media billionaire, Haim Saban's organization "Friends of the IDF". Every year, Saban raises $20 million annually for Israel's army, through his "Friends of the IDF" gala.

The organization employs high ranking Israeli military personnel in reserves, such as National Director and CEO, Maj. Gen. Yitzhak (Jerry) Gershon. The annual gala hosts suspected criminals of war such as former IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi, who presided over the 2008-2009 onslaught on Gaza, which took the lives of over 1400 Palestinians and destroyed the besieged strip's civilian infrastructure.

We believe Cowell can easily find better ways of using the money to make our world a better place, and we ask that he rescind his shameful donation to an army that occupies its days destroying homes, arresting and torturing both adults and children, and impeding the freedom of movement of the the indigenous people of Palestine.